


Camp Pining Gems

by SpongieK



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Camp Pining Hearts knockoff, F/F, F/M, Human AU, Slow Burn, Summer Camp AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-04
Updated: 2016-08-08
Packaged: 2018-06-06 10:31:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6750319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpongieK/pseuds/SpongieK
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Peridot is not happy. Her parents, fed up with her reclusive behavior, have shipped her off to Camp Dewey for the whole summer. Frankly, she wants nothing to do with this whole affair: hiking, canoeing, and bug bites are not her scene. However, as soon as she arrives, broken hearts, betrayals, mystical lakes, secret meetings, and grossly oversharing intimate details make themselves apparent. This situation might end up a whole lot more like her beloved Camp Pining Hearts than she thought.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Welcome to Camp

**Author's Note:**

> why work on your current Steven Universe AU fic when you can start ANOTHER ONE? Ugh, I swore to myself I wasn't going to use that title because it's so cheesy but alas, I'm a hack and can't think of anything better for now. The reason the tags aren't definitive yet is because I wanted to wait and see what happens in the new episodes coming (so close!) because while I haven't been spoiled, I hear there's a bit of Lapidot in the making...? Alright, enough yapping, enjoy!

Peridot couldn’t help but feel that her parents had misunderstood her obsession with  _ Camp Pining Hearts _ . Otherwise, their reasoning for signing her up for this ridiculous summer-long outdoor endeavour was completely unfounded. Not that that explanation comforted Peridot much on the ride over. For weeks she’d been storming around the house, shouting over and over that she would run away, or find some other loophole to get out of this. She’d begged, pleaded, schmoozed, even attempted a bribe, but no dice. Her parents were adamant that she “go outside” and “make friends” this summer. What utter tripe, Peridot thought, clearly the work of some extraverted capitalist propaganda

Peridot didn’t need to venture the outside world. As she’d explained to her parents countless times, the world was quickly becoming a digital jungle. The internet was a world she knew, and that would only be an asset to her as time went on. As for friends, well, Peridot didn’t see much of a benefit there. People had only served to annoy her at best and antagonize her at worst. What would be the purpose of engaging further with them? Hadn’t her parents heard of the  _ Hunger Games, _ the people with teams always got screwed over. She estimated only two days before she murdered at least one of her campmates.

“We’re here!” her mother chirped. Peridot declined to respond. The forested trail path that their car had been blazing through suddenly revealed an office cabin with a small dirt parking lot. The lot was full to the brim with cars and the whole area was swarming with parents dropping off their kids and saying their goodbyes. Peridot groaned, she had been procrastinating preparing for this in her mind as long as possible. Her body tensed instinctively, crowds of people. Her mother parked in a small spot at the end of the lot.

Peridot’s father turned in his seat and gave her a big smile, “Looks like these kids are a lot of fun, Peri.”

“Hmph,” Peridot turned to look out the window, “If by ‘fun’ you mean loud, dirty, and senseless then yes, I would say so. Peridot saw her father curl his lip in disappointment, but she was too busy brooding to care at the moment. He should have known better, what fifteen year old wants to spend an entire Summer in a cabin with no wifi? Her mother popped the trunk and went to get Peridot’s suitcase. Peridot sighed, she couldn’t avoid it any longer. She grabbed her backpack and hopped out of the car.

The fresh scent of pine and dirt greeted her. Peridot burst into a coughing fit. 

“Oh, Peri, it’s not that bad,” her dad rolled her eyes as he joined her, taking in a deep breath himself, “Come on, let’s go sign you in.”

They entered the office, which was slightly less crowded. At least the tearful goodbyes were left at the doorstep. Once the door shut, a pale, chipper older woman turned to them and smiled. She hustled over with a clipboard, “Well hello there, you must be one of our new campers.”

Peridot somehow successfully bit back a groan. She wasn’t five years old, despite this woman’s tone.

“Yup!” Peridot’s father answered for her, “this is little Peridot.”

Little? Great, now her dad was enabling the behavior. 

“Alrighty,” the woman looked down at her clipboard and found Peridot’s name, “So you must be her...father?” she asked unsure. Peridot had to admit, she didn’t look much like her dear old dad. Having fluffy blonde hair and standing only 5 feet flat did not add up to her father’s tall, dark-haired stature. The only trait they shared were the same wide, angular eyes. “Well, Peridot,” the woman beamed brightly at her, “It looks like you’re in the Crystal Gems program, Oh, you’re going to love it there, my little Sadie herself is in that program! It’s just lovely! Sadie loves it there too, she’s just so talented.”

Peridot kept herself from rolling her eyes, this woman was at like a 10 and she wanted her at a 4.

The woman finally stopped rambling on about her daughter to look down at the clipboard,“It says here you’re in the Yellow Cabin.”

Yellow Cabin, Peridot thought, sounds like a disease.

“Well, welcome to camp Miss Peridot, my name’s Barbara but just call me Barb,” the woman went on, putting her clipboard down and looking Peridot in the eye, “once you have your things I’ll lead you over to your cabin where you can meet your counselor.”

Goodie.

Peridot’s mom shortly arrived with Peridot’s suitcase and Barb walked them all out the backdoor of the office. There was a short trail that lead to the main center of the camp, Barb explained, where the mess Hall, Civic Center, First Aid, and other necessities for the camp were. In order to get to Peridot’s “Cluster,” as Barb called it, they walked a little further to a pathway on the right. Sure enough, it opened up to a clearing with four small cabins surrounding a campfire, each with a little colored flag waving on their porches (Yellow, Blue, Pink, and White respectively). The Yellow cabin was the first on the left and to their credit it didn’t look as ramshackle as Peridot was anticipating. It was certainly  best kept of the four cabins, its porch was clean and there were no stickers plastered on the windows. As they approached the cabin, Peridot noticed a little whiteboard tacked by the door with a list of names, including Peridot’s, next to a chart for chores like dinner duty and cleaning the bath house, lovely. Whoever her counselor was, she liked things in order.

Barb creaked open the door. The cabin was indeed as small as it looked from the outside, but it only had to hold two sets of bunkbeds and a single at the far wall. At first Peridot thought she was the first one to arrive when she heard a soft THUMP. A huge pair of thick tan arms appeared over the edge of the left top bunk as it bounced a rubber ball against the ceiling. 

“Jasper,” Barb warned, “I know Yellow has asked you not to do that.”

A husky voice scoffed as the supposed Jasper sat up in her bunk. Her. That was a bit of a surprise from how muscular her arms looked, fascinating. Quite a lot like Pierre in fact, Peridot noted. Her tan skin was offset by vitiligo stripes of lightness across her face and arms. She had long blonde hair tied in a chunky braid and piercing hazel eyes that were now staring at Peridot, “Perfect,” Jasper smirked, “You’re not Ronaldo, you can sleep in this bunk.”

Peridot blinked, at least she was sleeping on the top, “You don’t want it?” she asked.

“Nah, I’d just bump my head every morning, but I’ll claim bottom and save us both the tragedy of bunking with Ronaldo. Trust me, newbie, you’ll thank me,” Jasper answered. Before Peridot could tell her not to call her Newbie, Jasper hopped over the edge of the bunk without using the ladder and landed with a thud on her feet. 

Barb shook her head, “It’s the first day Jasper, don’t make me call your mom and tell her you broke camp property already.”

Jasper rolled her eyes but said nothing. 

“Where  _ is _ Yellow anyway?” Barb asked.

Jasper shrugged, “Probably fighting with Blue somewhere.”

Barb sighed, “I’ll have to contact her, she needs to meet her new camper.”

Jasper looked Peridot up and down, “So what’s your name Newbie.”

“Well if you must know it’s not Newbie it’s Peridot,” Peridot snapped back. Jasper didn’t even flinch, or act surprised at all. She just smirked again, much to Peridot’s annoyance.

“Peri! Don’t be so cranky,” her mom admonished, “Why don’t you ask Jasper to show you around while I put your sheets on.”

Peridot growled, she really didn’t want to listen to her parents at the moment, but the thought of sticking around with them and Barb wasn’t exactly appealing, “Fine, come on Jasper.”

“Already giving orders?” Jasper asked mockingly, but followed Peridot out of the cabin. Jasper lead her towards the campfire and swung her arms wide to gesture to the whole Cluster, “Alright so this is the Crystal Gem cluster, as you have already discerned, no doubt. You’re in Yellow cabin so congratulations, you’ve already won at being in the best, most awesome cabin.”

“Woo,” Peridot muttered dryly.

“We’re the most efficient cabin in the whole camp,” Jasper beamed, “We’ve won the Cluster Cup five years in a-” Jasper suddenly stopped herself and frustration flashed across her face as she grumbled, “well...we WOULD have won five years in a row.”

“Cluster cup?” Peridot arched an eyebrow.

“Heh, yeah. It’s a prize to whichever cabin earns the most badges all summer,” Jasper explained.

“Sounds very mature,” Peridot ran a hand through her hair as the heat began to make her sweat. The outside was horrible, she should check to see if the cabins were air conditioned.

“Yeah, well, allegedly the Diamonds came up with it about twelve years ago when the camp became obsessed with Harry Potter,” Jasper shrugged, “It’s intense.”

“Yeah? Well what happened last year that sullied your reputation so?” Peridot crossed her arms.

Jasper scowled and looked off, “Let’s just say Ronaldo had a little  _ issue _ with the stargazing badge.”

Peridot rolled her eyes. Badges? She wasn’t a little girl scout, she was closer to a grown woman for crying out loud. This camp had to be a joke. It was nowhere near as cool as Camp Pining Hearts. When she looked back at Jasper, the behemoth-girl was staring at something behind Peridot with a look of utter terror.

“She...she came back this year? She wasn’t supposed to come back,” she heard Jasper whisper. Peridot whipped her head around to see what had horrified her companion. Coming up the trail was a small Filipina girl, even skinnier than Peridot, with short layered blue hair. She had quite a bit of luggage with her, but no parents in sight. She hadn’t looked over yet, and Jasper apparently was not going to give her the chance, as she grabbed Peridot’s hand and sprinted away. 

Peridot nearly fell flat on her face trying to keep up. It was like a gazelle had just been warned of a lion’s presence. “Wh-Where the hell are we going?!” Peridot yelped.

“Uh, er,” Jasper stumbled as they ran down another pathway leading away from the cluster, “Th-the lake! Yeah! I have to show you the lake, it’s reaaaaally important.”

Peridot tried tugging her hand out of Jasper’s monster grip, to no avail. Luckily, they stopped before her lungs collapsed. Peridot collapsed to her knees, wheezing on the dirt shore. That was way more physical activity than she was used to, and arguably, more than she was made for. The lake itself was surrounded by a clearing of dirt that lead into the forest. At the far end, Peridot could see a river flowing into it, a good place for tubing and all that. Once she caught her breath a little, Peridot stood up and pointed her finger directly into Jasper’s chest and yelled at her in between gasps, “What...the hell...are you doing?!”

“Um, the lake?” Jasper pointed towards the large body of water as if hoping that would convince Peridot. When it only received a glare, Jasper sighed, “Okay...that girl...Lapis...is my ex, sort of.”

Peridot’s mind went blank for a moment, that wasn’t what she was expecting, “Ex? Is she from your school?”

“What? No, we hooked up last summer,” Jasper clarified.

“You...really?” Peridot asked, dumbfounded, “You dated someone from camp?”

Jasper blushed, “It’s not like it was a decision with a lot of thought behind it,” she defended, “It just sort of...happened, and it wasn’t good...for anyone involved.”

Peridot blinked, maybe this was more like  _ Camp Pining Hearts _ than she thought, “What happened?”

Jasper rubbed the back of her neck and refused to look Peridot in the eye, “Er...I don’t think it would be right of me to say.”

Alright, well the direct route was a bust.

“Aughhhh,” Jasper groaned loudly, covering her face with her hands, “Just great, this camp is supposed to be away from all the bullshit.”

“Well, that’s probably why it’s frowned upon to hook up at camp.”

“Yeah, hindsight is 20/20, squirt,” Jasper sat down on the dirt. She drew her knees to her chin, making her appear much smaller, “I know it’s mega-weird to be saying all these things when we just met. I promise, most of camp is normal and fun. I didn’t mean to drag you into this mess.”

Peridot wasn’t about to let the only interesting thing going on in this god forsaken woods get away from her. No, she had two choices. Wait out the Summer in a miserable, lonely heap and watch  _ Camp Pining Hearts _ ad nauseum on her DVD player, or befriend Jasper and see where this goes. She hesitated.

“It’s fine, really,” Peridot shrugged, “But why are you freaking out? Sure it’ll be awkward, but you can just avoid her, be polite but don’t engage.”

“You have no idea what she’s like...what  _ we _ were like,” Jasper sighed, “I can’t really explain it she just brings out the worst in me, and I guess I must do the same for her. I just  _ know _ that if we’re around each other this summer we’re going to drive each other crazy.”

Jasper’s resignation was apparent and Peridot felt herself sympathizing. Even if she wasn’t crazy about this bug-infested nuthouse, she could see how much Jasper cared about it. Peridot scratched her head, “I’ll help you stay cool, if you want.”

“What?”

“I mean...I don’t know what’s going to happen when you see her, but if you’re getting all wound up I’ll do my best to distract you, or her, or whatever...I don’t even know what I’m saying,” Peridot gave up, she wasn’t good at comforting, she wouldn’t be surprised if Jasper was embarrassed for her, “Just...if you need help, I can do something...maybe,” after all, this  _ was _ as close to a real life  _ Camp Pining Hearts _ double-episode special as she was going to get.

“Wow, under all that complaining and whining, you’re actually a big softie,” Jasper grinned.

Peridot blushed, “I am not! I deny that accusation!”

Jasper chuckled and stood, holding her hands up in mock defense, “Alright, alright, I’ll tell no one.”

“So...uh, what’s so special about this lake?” Peridot asked. 

Jasper’s smirk returned to her face, thoughts of Lapis quickly thrown away, “Well, it’s said that if you look deep enough into it, you’ll see the face of your true love.”

“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard,” Peridot scoffed.

Jasper shrugged, “Alright, sure, if you don’t care that’s fine. All I know is Rose looked last summer and said she saw his whole face.”

Peridot knew this was just some made up story. A silly camp tale to pass on to the little kids. She knew that. 

...Still, there wasn’t any harm in looking. Peridot walked to the water’s edge and leaned over. It was pretty clear but dark, she couldn’t see a thing...for a moment. At first it was just her reflection, and then another figure began to emerge. Peridot couldn’t believe her eyes! Was this real? Her heartbeat raced. This was just like in her fanfics.

“I-I see them!” she exclaimed, “It’s showing up! It’s, it’s-!”

Peridot felt a hard shove against her back and splashed face first into the water. She wasn’t prepared and ended up swallowing a mouthful of lake water. She sputtered and flailed her arms, eventually coming to the surface. Jasper was laughing so hard she had to actually hold her sides.

“Oh, man,” Jasper wiped away a tear, “Amethyst would’ve loved to have seen that!”

Peridot changed her mind, this Summer was going to suck.

“You clod!” she screamed and hopped out of the water to chase after Jasper, who had already gotten a head start down the path.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to clarify that I've never actually gone to a sleep-away camp for longer than a weekend. I WAS a girl scout and know a thing or two about camping/outdoor activities, and a bunch of my friends did go to girl scout camp, but I'm sure there's a lot of holes in my knowledge. If anyone wants to give any feedback on how I'm portraying it, don't feel like you're being rude, I really don't mind. 
> 
> The first few chapters are probably going to stick with Peridot and have a strict chronological flow, but after that it'll be more open. So, if there's a pairing or character you wanna' see, leave a suggestion! Or don't, that's cool.
> 
> OH! I also want to give a shout out to JoyHeart's "Stories from Diamond Academy," it has such a good characterization and has been a real inspiration to me.


	2. Even More Clods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peridot meets more new campers, and Diamonds, as the day goes on. A certain mysterious blue dame makes her move and things take a turn for the worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gee, Spongie, why did you decide to write this fic about camp at the beginning of summer and then wait until the end to update it? Because I'm an idiot.  
> I've been so busy! Not to mention this chapter gave me a LOTTTTT of issues and I must have rewritten it like three times, so hopefully now you can enjoy. There's a lot of new people in this chapter but I promise the next one is going to go deeper into Peridot and the other characters for PLOTTTT. Sorry for all those that have been waiting...if anyone was at all...I'm on a roll now though so perhaps Chapter 3 will be out sooner rather than later... :U?  
> Please enjoy!

Peridot lay her shirt and pants on the laundry line, dressed in her second set of clothes, pointedly ignoring Jasper. Not that Jasper seemed to notice, she was busy wrestling on the ground with some girl named Amethyst. As soon as Peridot’s chase led them back to the Crystal Gem cluster, this lilac-haired bundle of chaos lept at Jasper and the two had been laughing and quipping at each other in Spanish since.

Peridot had had to say goodbye to her parents soaking wet. While her mother found this a bit alarming, her dad thought it hilarious. Of course. Laundry wasn’t going to be done for another six days, but at least the sun was high up so her clothes should dry on the line soon enough. After pinning up her socks, she huffed and walked back into the cabin. Maybe she could play her 3DS for a while before going back to ignoring Jasper. She didn’t know what she expected when she extended a hand of friendship towards Jasper. So far, everyone at this camp was a bunch of clods.

“Excuse me,” a cool female voice from the back of the cabin interrupted her thoughts. Peridot looked up. The woman in question was tall, maybe even taller than Jasper. She was the very embodiment of stoic. Her bright, heavy, blonde hair was coiffed on top of her head, making her look like an 80s business woman. Her pale pink skin suffered from a clear farmer’s tan around her shoulders and calves, though, which made her look a bit silly. She stood in front of a neatly made cot with nary a personal item in sight. “I’m Yellow Diamond,” the woman greeted, sticking her hand out, “You must be Peridot.”

“Y-Yes,” Peridot noted that Yellow had not moved, forcing Peridot to come shake her hand, “Um, so what is your name? Like, your real name.”

“Yellow Diamond is all you will need to know me by, trust me,” Yellow Diamond crossed her arms. Peridot normally would’ve rolled her eyes, but this woman had such a stern air about her that she actually found herself feeling nervous.

“Yes ma’am,” she automatically responded. Ma’am? This woman couldn’t be more than 22. The response seemed natural due to her domineering presence She reminded Peridot of the show choir teacher back at her school. Peridot was of course not actually _in_ show choir (could you imagine?), but she always heard horror stories about chairs being thrown in the band room. Peridot feared she’d made Yellow feel old with the “ma’am” comment, but Yellow appeared pleased by her reaction and gave a tiny smile. Then, Yellow pulled a small notebook out of her fanny pack, and yes this was the moment Peridot noticed the fanny pack, and handed it to her.

‘CAMP DEWEY: A GUIDE TO BADGES’ was emblazoned on the front with a picture of a middle-aged, red-faced, balding man with his arms around some smiling campers. Peridot flipped through the book as Yellow Diamond explained, “This is the guide to all the badges you have the ability to earn this year. Each badge has a set of requirements you must meet before you can earn them.”

Every badge page had a list of requirements and a picture of that same man from the cover performing one of them with a huge smile. Archery, team sports, canoeing, bowling, tea ceremony...the list was much more extensive and ecletic than Peridot was expecting.

“Now, technically speaking you do not HAVE to complete these badges, however,” Yellow Diamond leaned down so she was at Peridot’s height and peered at her through piercing green eyes, “I predict that you are a good, smart camper that wants to be useful to this cabin, correct?”

Peridot swallowed as quietly as she could, “Y-Yes ma’am.”

Yellow Diamond quickly stood straight again, apparently satisfied with the answer. She turned swiftly on her heals and picked up a clipboard from the cot and began violently scribbling. Well, so much for hiding out in the cabin. Peridot wasn’t about to stick around in here in silence with _that_ around. She strived to appear nonchalant as she exited the cabin. Amethyst and Jasper were now sitting on logs by the campfire, laughing loudly at something. Peridot pretended to be rigorously studying the Badge notebook as she took a seat as far away from them as possible.

“Yo, Peridot, do we smell or something?” Jasper asked, clearly not understanding Peridot’s attempts to ignore her. When there was no answer she gave a bark of laughter, “Still mad about the lake? It was just a joke, relax.”

Amethyst took a seat next to Peridot, “Don’t worry, she’s a dick to everyone,” Amethyst grinned, “I’m Amethyst by the way.”

Amethyst was stout and curvy, only coming up to Jasper’s waist (and yet somehow still keeping up with her energy). Her fluffy hair was only kept from trailing on the ground by a long ponytail. Her bright t-shirt slipped off her dark sepia shoulders and showed off some freckles. The sun suited her.

“I gathered. Peridot,” Peridot gave a small wave.

“What a lovely little meeting of the minds we have going,” Jasper chuckled as she joined the pair on Peridot’s other side. A giant clod sandwich, Peridot thought.

Peridot scowled, “I take it you’ve been here before, right? That’s how you know...this one,” she pointed her chin in Jasper’s direction.

“Heh, yeah, me and Miss J have been here a couple years now. Incoming juniors, what what!” Amethyst cheered. A year older than Peridot. In her eyes, this did not explain Jasper’s behavior in the slightest. “You feeling home sick already, ‘Dot?” Amethyst asked.

Peridot blinked. Dot? She realistically should be annoyed that Amethyst dared not respect her enough to use her name. Then again, no one had ever given Peridot a nickname...at least not one that wasn’t meant to torment her. For once, it wasn’t a label to prove she was an “other,” like nerd or loser or even weirdo. It was a gift. An offering to feel included.

...Ugh, this was dumb, Amethyst clearly thought nothing of it. Peridot knew that. She wasn’t about to let herself get too excited over something so small. Even if it did make her happy. This is what people did after all. _Normal_ people. It was simple, even if humanity had never deemed Peridot worthy of such inclusion. She should just play it cool.

“Not at all,” Peridot shrugged, “However, I think I only have about another half hour before wifi deprivation finally starts to get to me.”

“First day’s the worst,” Amethyst admitted, “By the end of the third day though, you’ll have adjusted...or lost all hope.”

“Great,” Peridot groaned.

Amethyst giggled, “Don’t worry, Dot. I know it might look bleak now, but camp is...it’s freeing, you know?”

“Yeah...freeing,” Jasper sighed, scratching the back of her neck.

“Something wrong, bruja?” Amethyst asked.

“She saw her ex,” Peridot said.

“Dude!” Jasper blushed and gave Peridot’s shoulder a hard smack.

“Hey!” Peridot yelped, “What did _I_ do?” It wasn’t as if Amethyst was going to go the entire Summer without noticing. Yet Jasper was blushing. It was so odd that she could be reduced to such a state by something so small.

“Yoooooo, for real?” Amethyst looked over her shoulder quickly and then whispered, “Lapis is back?”

Jasper nodded solemnly.

Amethyst clicked her tongue, “That’s rough. What are you gonna’ do?”

“Uh, avoid her at all costs?” Jasper answered, “And this little bugger has volunteered to keep me out of trouble,” Jasper wrapped an arm around Peridot’s shoulder and gave a quick squeeze.

“I can’t exactly promise to be on 24-7 secret service detail,” Peridot huffed. She wasn’t used to having someone she just met give this much physical contact...but much like the nickname, she liked it.

“Uh...Per,” Jasper leaned back on the log to look at something (Another nickname? Was Peridot really too long for them? Peridot decided against correcting her), “Are those...yours?”

Peridot looked where Jasper was pointing. Clear as day her white and green alien panties were floating on the wind with a fast track towards them. Peridot’s head turned completely red as she let out an inhuman screech. They were supposed to stay on the line until they dried! She dashed as quickly as her tiny body would allow to grab the undergarments, but the wind swiftly blew it over her head, and directly onto Jasper’s face.

“Oh...oh my stars,” Peridot hid her face in her hands. She wanted to disappear. Surely now the world would go back to its rightful order and the two older girls would be laughing at her and stuffing her in a closet. Many others had done so with much less provocation.

Amethyst burst out laughing. It was already starting!

“Could...could you take them?” Jasper asked quietly, slightly muffled by the panties. Peridot finally looked at her victim and saw she was almost as red as she was. Peridot sheepishly plucked the underwear from Jasper’s face.

“What’s going on out there?” a voice called from the Pink Cabin. Peridot was NOT about to be introduced to someone this way.

Before Amethyst could say anything Peridot sputtered, “I-I’m putting this back on the line!” and dashed behind Yellow cabin. Maybe she should just keep going and live in the woods for the rest of the summer.

“Ugh...of course this would happen to me,” Peridot lamented.

“Who are you?”

Peridot jumped. She hadn’t seen Lapis standing there. Behind the cabins, grass grew as it approached the surrounding forest. Lapis stood at the edge, holding a handful of wildflowers. She looked like an old painting, Peridot thought. She was beautiful, but there was a sadness to her. As if she’d already given up on the world. Peridot knew about that. She didn’t look nearly as imposing as Jasper had made her out to be. She was a tiny little thing! Sure, now Peridot could see she was about a head taller than her (frankly, no one was shorter than Peridot), but nothing about her seemed imposing. Maybe Jasper was just exaggerating. After all, she hadn’t exactly been trustworthy when she pushed Peridot into the lake.

“You’re new,” Lapis went on when Peridot hesitated.

“Peridot,” she snapped out of her thoughts.

Lapis nodded, “You’re hanging around Jasper,” Peridot noted that Lapis didn’t give her name, “You shouldn’t.”

Peridot didn’t expect her to be so blunt, “I can’t exactly avoid that, she’s my bunkmate.”

“Look, I’m just warning you,” Lapis frowned, “That girl is not what you think she is, she’s a...a brute.”

“Um...o-okay,” Peridot offered. What else could she say? She was taken aback to say the least. She wasn’t sure what she expected from Jasper’s ex. Jasper was huge to be sure, but a brute? That wasn’t exactly the vibe that Peridot got from her. More like an oversized goofy clod.

Now that Peridot thought of it, Lapis didn’t exactly seem like Jasper’s type. Her and Amethyst? Made sense, they were practically the same person at different heights. Lapis looked like she would break if she tried any of that tumbling Jasper seemed so fond of.

Peridot admitted that she didn’t know a whole lot about romantic relationships, or human relationships in general. However, from her time reading young adult fiction and various magazines aimed at her demographic, she had realized some things. One, that people liked people who were similar to them, and that if your significant other was some form of supernatural, the chances of them being possessive skyrocketed. In any case, she couldn’t even begin to visualize these two together. But they had been, and judging by their demeanor towards each other, it was probably a lot more like those YA romances than the magazines.

Lapis looked Peridot up and down, “Nice panties,” she said. It was then Peridot realized she was still holding her alien underwear in her fist. With a yelp she quickly hid both her hands behind her back. She had not been at camp yet two hours and she’d humiliated herself in front of every person she’d come across. Of course she had. This was exactly why she told her parents this was a bad idea.

Lapis gave a small smile before covering it with her hand. Peridot blushed. She was even more pretty and intimidating when she smiled. Luckily, though, Lapis simply walked back to Blue Cabin and out of sight. Maybe Peridot should go back to plan A and hide out in her bunk the rest of the summer.

 

* * *

 

Jasper and Kiki were about to go for blood in their argument about making Kiki bunk with Ronaldo (in which Ronaldo smartly stayed out of) when the sharp noise of a whistle being blown rang through. Peridot didn’t know what that meant, but if it meant an interruption from this, she was grateful.

“Ugh, fine, we’ll talk about this later,” Kiki stormed out of the cabin. Jasper rolled her eyes and Peridot followed her out. Judging from the sun’s position, it was noon. Peridot lamented that she was already becoming in tune with nature. She hadn’t even thought to ask her mom for a watch and she was trying to conserve her phone’s battery until she found out where all the outlets were. In any case, a whole colorful cast of people she hadn’t met yet spilled out of their cabins at the same time towards the source of the whistling: a large girl with long curly pink locks standing in front of a folding table full of sandwiches.

The girl smiled and her warm presence radiated outwardly, “Gather up right here campers!”

Haphazardly, everyone smooshed together before this girl. Jasper ‘stealthily’ nudged her way to the front, earning a few groans. Peridot, due to her size, was pushed towards the back instinctively. Of course. Maybe next time she would latch onto Jasper like a koala.

“Where’s Pink Diamond?” Jasper asked with a cocked brow.

“I’m in training!” Rose beamed, “She’s asked me to take over a few things.”

“Oh that’s wonderful, Rose!” a girl further up gushed. From the back, Peridot could only see a head of sleek orange hair bouncing with excitement, “Of course, you deserve it.”

Rose rubbed the back of her neck, humbled, “Oh, thank you Pearl.”

“Yeah, but like, where is Pink Diamond,” Amethyst asked again.

“You’d think that would be important information that people want to know,” Jasper added.

 

It was.

 

But no one got an answer.

Jasper shrugged and tried to reach for one of the sandwiches to which Rose gently smacked her hand away, “Ah, ah, ah, not yet. Everyone, please form a line. Once you get your sandwich please take a seat on the logs. We’ll be getting to know each other very shortly.”

Everyone quickly shoved and organized themselves into a sort of line, pushing Peridot further and further back.

Finally, Peridot got to the front of the line and grabbed a sandwich. Rose smiled down at her. Peridot felt a little put on the spot with the attention, like a kindergarten teacher was praising her.

“You must be Peridot, I hope you’re settling in well. I know it can be hard the first time,” Rose gave a sympathetic nod. Peridot conceded that the girl seemed genuine. She couldn’t be more than a few years older than Peridot and yet her entire aura screamed “mom.” Peridot didn’t know how anyone could be so cheery around people. Peridot forced a smile and turned to find a seat by the campfire. Jasper and Amethyst were digging into their sandwiches like wild animals, leaving strewn lettuce everywhere. Even though there was an extra spot next to them, Peridot declined.

Peridot noted that Lapis had taken a seat as far away from Jasper as possible and wasn’t even looking in her direction. That was a no-go, too. Peridot didn’t think her body could handle the tension. She picked a spot next to the enthusiastic ginger-haired girl, Pearl she surmised, from before. Pearl scooted over to give Peridot room and was eating her sandwich like a perfect lady. This was the safer option for sure. Pearl gave a small wave as a greeting, but before she could say anything, Rose clapped her hands together loudly.

“Okay campers, while we eat we’re going to play a name game!” Rose announced. Peridot inwardly cringed. This was the exact kind of activity she wanted to avoid. Most of the other kids here looked to be at least her age if not older. She felt embarrassed for every single one of them.

Again, Jasper seemed annoyed, “Come on, Rose, most of us know each other.”

“Jasper, we have four new campers who should get the chance to learn everyone’s name. It’ll be fun, trust me,” Rose said confidently.

“I think it’s a great idea, Rose,” Pearl chimed in. Peridot raised a brow, there was something weird about this one, too. Were her and Rose involved with one another too? For christ sake these guys were hornier than the band kids back at school. Hopefully this place had less bus ride handjobs.

Jasper rolled her eyes but let Rose continue, “The rules are simple: Everyone introduces themselves with an adjective that has the first letter of their first name plus their first name. Old campers also give their favorite camp activity, new campers say what they’re looking forward to most. Simple, okay?”

Peridot quietly groaned, this girl was for real. She really was a mom, with all the schmultzy activities that entailed. Hopefully this would go by painlessly.

“I’ll start,” Rose cleared her throat, “My name is Radical Rose and my favorite activity is dancing!” she gave a little twirl and pointed at Jasper, “Jasper why don’t you start.”

Jasper shrugged, “Okay, fine, I’m Jaguar Jasper.”

“That’s not an adjective, dumbass,” Amethyst scoffed.

“Amethyst, watch your language,” Rose warned.

“It’s an adjective if I want it to be, so shut up,” Jasper shoved Amethyst lightly, “anyway my favorite activity is...wrestling, I guess.”

Peridot noticed Lapis pointedly staring at her nails as if there was something very important etched into them.

“That’s not an activity, that’s just something you do,” Pearl huffed.

“That’s the definition of an activity moron,” Jasper snapped back.

“You know that Rose meant a camp-sanctioned activity!” Pearl glared at Jasper, “You can’t earn a badge in wrestling.”

“You can earn a badge in team sports,” a girl with dark, poofy curls to Peridot’s left piped up.

“Yes, Ruby, but wrestling isn’t a team sport,” Pearl sighed.

“Uh, hello? Tag teams,” Amethyst joked.

Rose waved her hands, “Okay, okay! Let’s keep going.”

“Okay, I’m Asshole Amethyst-”

“Amethyst!”

“What? I identify with that word.”

Rose sighed, slowly giving up.

“My favorite activity is eating.”

“That’s not an-!”

“Pearl,” Rose interrupted gently, “let’s move on.”

Next was a scrawny kid with huge gauges in his ears and a floppy mop of hair on top of his head. He looked just about as pleased to be here as Peridot, perhaps SOMEONE here was sane. “My name’s Lars,” he sniffed.

“Lars, please pick an adjective,” Rose gently intoned, although it was clear she was losing patience.

Lars glared at the ground, “I don’t want to, I’m not some kid!” Rose bit her lip. Peridot wasn’t sure if she admired the kid’s moxie, or annoyed with his immature attitude.

Pearl gasped, “How dare you! Rose is trying to make this camp better for you!”

Obviously, this only antagonized Lars as he growled, “I didn’t want to come here anyway, my parents are stupid!”

Peridot leaned back on the log, sensing the tension of drama coming. Apparently, Jasper didn’t get the memo.

“Okay, clearly this isn’t working out,” Jasper shook her head, “Can’t we just socialize on our own? I mean there’s an ice cream social tonight anyway. That’s the key word, ‘social.’”

“You know best don’t you?” Lapis muttered a little too loudly. Quite a few of the campers sucked in a quick breath. Eyes shifted between the two. Maybe Jasper didn’t hear her?

That was clearly too much to hope for. Jasper’s expression darkened heavily.

“You got something to say over there?” Jasper growled.

“Please! Everyone! This is just a simple game!” Rose raised her voice, but now Jasper’s sights were locked on and she couldn’t even hear her. Peridot wondered if it would be considered rude to dig a hole in the ground to hide. She wasn’t ready for nice and polite interaction, let alone this.

“Nothing, nothing at all,” Lapis retorted, crossing her arms and looking to her side, still not acknowledging a now fuming Jasper.

“Ohhhh no, you don’t get to play that game anymore, trying to play off like you’re just so goddamn reasonable when you’re clearly stirring some shit,” Jasper stood and pointed accusingly at Lapis. Lapis sat like a statue, holding herself together.

Rose took a step in front of Jasper and looked her straight in the eyes, “Jasper, sit. Now.”

This would be considered the wrong move as Jasper glared straight at Rose, “What? Pink Diamond gives you just a taste of power and you think you can tell me what to do? You’re hardly older than me so why don’t you just take a seat and shut up!”

There was a chorus of gasps among the regulars. This wasn’t good, the tension was so thick, Peridot was already sweating. She was sensitive to these kinds of things, she didn’t think she could take it any longer.

Pearl stood up and started sputtering angrily, “H-H-How dare you! You’re really out of line, the Diamonds are going to hear of this!”

“Oh pipe down you freak!” Jasper rolled her eyes and then pointed at Lapis, “She knows exactly what kind of game she’s playing and it’s pissing me off!”

“J-Jasper!” Peridot suddenly heard herself say. She’d stood up without thinking, needing to stop her new friend, but not exactly knowing how. She...hadn’t exactly planned this far. All eyes were on her, not good. She trembled. What should she say? She had all of their attention and somehow needed to diffuse the tension. Jasper gave her a questioning look. Peridot took a deep breath, stood up straight with a salute, and loudly proclaimed, “Pesky Peridot! I’m looking most forward to making new friends at camp! Sir!”

_There was no need to add the sir…_

Silence. Silence and confused blinks.

Jasper burst into howling laughter.

Peridot felt her head spin and hot anger in her belly, “It’s not funny you clod! You’re acting like an ass!”

“Oh my god, Per!” Jasper wiped a tear from her eye.

“What is the meaning of all of this?” Yellow Diamond’s stern voice demanded from behind them all. Peridot turned. Her counselor was joined with a tanned woman in a hijab that hovered over her eyes, making her have an eerie demeanor. The counselors here must be under the impression that they’re the commanders of some secret organization.

“We were just getting to know each other with lunch!” Rose stepped forward.

“We heard yelling,” the new woman’s said with a light, deadpan voice.

“It was my fault, Yellow,” Jasper bowed her head, “I lost my head for a bit.”

She looked actually apologetic, to Peridot’s surprise. Jasper didn’t seem to listen to anyone, especially not Rose, but in front of Yellow she seemed so contrite. These “Diamonds” had such an effect on everyone.

Yellow rolled her eyes, “Surprising no one again.”

Jasper winced.

Yellow sighed, “Alright, finish up with lunch then, calmly please. Rose, may we have a word?”

Rose nodded solemnly and walked over to the duo. Jasper took her seat back with Amethyst, who patted Jasper on the back and whispered something comforting to her.

“Ugh,” Pearl scoffed quietly, “She’s such a nuisance.”

Peridot met Jasper’s eyes. Jasper gave a weak smile. Peridot couldn’t help but feel bad for her, even if she was a little scary when she had yelled.

Everyone continued to eat in silence. Lapis finished eating first, and walked back into her cabin without another word.


	3. Never Have I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peridot finally gets a real chance to talk to Lapis, but what does that mean for her standing at the camp?  
> And just when she thought she could sleep in peace, something, or someone, disturbs her nights.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow this update came really fast. and yes, prepare for a long chapter of pining gem goodness, we're gonna' take a bit of a closer look at Peridot...enjoy.

Peridot sleepily slid her tray full of toast and scrambled eggs onto a table at the far left of the Mess Hall. The Diamonds had kept the campers up to well into the night with ice cream socials, orientation, a reading of the rules and schedule, and then they expected everyone to be up by 8 AM. Peridot was accustomed to a much more slanted sleeping schedule during the summer, staying up into the wee morning hours on her laptop and waking in the late afternoon. This new circadian rhythm seemed a steep punishment to her. She hardly even noticed when Jasper and Amethyst slammed their trays down in front of her.

“Heh, looks like someone’s got camp jet lag,” Jasper smirked.

“That’s...not how jet lag works you clod,” Peridot yawned, too tired to get riled up further. Despite the early hour, the mess hall was clamouring with chatter. It was giving her a headache. Peridot vaguely wondered if there was a coffee maker somewhere. Amethyst and Jasper were already gobbling down their food just as they did yesterday. Maybe a place to vomit would be more prudent to find.

“Ugh, are you guys afraid someone’s going to steal your food or something?” Peridot groaned.

“We have to hurry and claim a badge-maker form before Ronaldo hordes them all to make a bunch of weird things like UFO-sighting or tomogachi raising or some shit,” Amethyst grunted with her mouth full.

_Charming_.

“And if I want to help, I have to hurry and have enough time to come back and clean up after breakfast,” Jasper added.

_So that was her punishment_. After the Diamond’s had conferred with Rose about what had happened at lunch yesterday, they’d called Jasper into the counselor room, away from the other campers. There’d been a tense air between Rose and Jasper ever since, but nothing ever came of it. Jasper was fine with letting Rose demand respect from her, at least for now.

Ruby took a seat next to Peridot, “I’m astounded you guys haven’t ever choked on your food.”

“Oh, Rubles,” Amethyst swallowed, “You want to come with us? We’re gonna’ try and make Wrestling a badge.”

Ruby smirked, but her eyes weren’t looking at Amethyst, “I’ve actually got something else I wanted to do.”

Peridot followed her gaze to see Sapphire, a girl from Blue Cabin with long silky, dark hair that covered her eyes. Peridot had seen Sapphire and Ruby talking a bit at the ice cream social. She guessed, from the look on Ruby’s face, it had been quite the pleasant conversation. Sapphire walked by their table with a small wave to Ruby, but kept walking. Peridot watched her go to the other side of the mess hall to an empty....no, a nearly empty table populated only by Lapis.

The other three girls kept talking while Peridot watched out of her periphery as Sapphire sat down. Despite the camp literally being full to the brim with campers, Lapis had been sitting alone. It seemed odd to Peridot that Lapis, a girl who’d presumably been here last year, was alone. Even the new kids at this point had at least found some group to hang out in. Peridot’s own table was a testament to that. Lapis barely even acknowledged Sapphire, seeming to take more interest in her food. She looked...

She looked like how Peridot ate at school.

“Hey, Dot.”

Amethyst slid Peridot some sort of announcement slip.

“I saw this on the announcement board, new badge this year, looks like something you’d be into,” she grinned mischievously. Peridot quirked an eyebrow as she opened the slip.

“S.S. Creativity, a badge in fan-based fiction writing,” Peridot read, “It’s a badge in...fan fiction.”

Jasper snorted, “Of course it is.”

“You think I’m one of those kinds of people that spends time thinking about what it would be like if two fake people kissed or got mpreg or something?”

Well she was right. She thought about it a lot.

“What’s mpreg?” Amethyst asked.

 

* * *

 

After breakfast, the camp was the busiest Peridot had seen yet. Groups of campers were learning to tie knots, going on hikes, doing...zumba dancing she guessed. Peridot knew that she could have just gone back to her cabin, but she suspected Yellow Diamond would be alerted as soon as she stepped foot inside. Jasper might have nerve enough to rub against her, but Peridot wanted to survive. She looked down at the slip and sighed. She was at least be impressed this camp had something she was actually interested in.

The slip gave directions to a cabin that was close to the counselor's break room. It looked a bit more modern than the other ones, so it was probably a recent addition. The amount of campers that had been milling about had decreased the closer Peridot got to this location. Only the nerds wanted to be inside at camp.

Peridot opened the door. The cabin apparently was some sort of makeshift classroom/storage space. There were a handful of small tables with chairs, each with a stack of looseleaf paper on it, but the rest of the room was full of boxes. At least there was air conditioning, so Peridot wasn’t about to complain. The counselor was a lanky young woman with thick glasses. She looked delighted to see Peridot.

“Welcome! Please, take a seat, we’ll get started soon, just waiting for any stragglers!” She chirped.

Peridot looked around the room and saw a familiar sight from that morning. Lapis sat in the last table at the back of the room, alone.Peridot didn’t even have time to be surprised. She hadn’t exactly expected Jasper’s dark lady to be into fanfiction. In any case, this was uncharted territory. They were in the Cluster anymore. Peridot wasn’t under Jasper’s wing now either, she was on her own when it came to Lapis. The easiest thing to do would be to stay away, not necessarily picking a side but not wanting trouble. Besides, Lapis had been there at lunch yesterday, she was already under the impression that Peridot had ignored her advice regarding Jasper. Yet, there was something that made the sight of Lapis alone uncomfortable to Peridot. This indeed was how Peridot must look a lot of the time from the outside perspective. And she could do what everyone else had done to her, pass her by.

Peridot took the empty seat next to Lapis. It wasn’t completely unexplainable, she was the only other camper in the Crystal Gem Cluster in the room after all. Lapis actually looked up at her when she sat. Peridot nervously waved, “Hey,” she said with a small voice. Lapis nodded, then went back to staring ahead. There was nothing to really say.

A few more minutes passed with only one more kid trickling in, the counselor clapped her hands together, “Alright! Welcome all of you! You’re here because you’d like to earn the S.S. Creativity badge, and honestly, I’m so proud of all of you for coming. My name is Miss Silver.”

‘All of you’ included six total girls with Lapis being the oldest of all of them, probably. Peridot suddenly felt very silly.

“Whether you are a proud connoisseur of the non-canon or just merely curious, fanfiction is a completely valid and lovely hobby to pursue.”

Peridot thought about that one fic where Edgeworth from Ace Attorney got tazed in the butthold until he died.

“Fanfiction is where thousands of young people, particularly girls, explore their creativity and build self-esteem,” Miss Silver mused, “Now, we’re going to jump right into it. I want all of you to take a sheet of that paper and write down what you like to write about. We’ll take just a few minutes to do this, ok?”

Simple enough, but a little odd. Peridot took a sheet for herself and handed one to Lapis.

“It could be things like the show or book or game you like, or themes you like to explore, or, yes, pairings you like,” Miss Silver explained, “Oh, but please stray away from sexual topics, that’s the only way the higher ups let me run this badge!”

The younger girls in the room giggled a bit. Peridot began to list things:

_Camp Pining Hearts_

_Percy/Pierre_

_Rivals to Lovers_

_Competition_

_High School AU_

_Star Trek: The Next Generation_

Lapis wrote her list over a covered hand, not that Peridot could blame her.

“Alright, everyone done?” Miss Silver went on, “Now, I want you to switch with someone.”

Peridot could almost feel the beads of sweat forming on everyone’s foreheads.

“I know, I know what you’re thinking: it’s embarrassing! But there’s a method to this, I want to create a judgement free zone, alright? No need to be embarrassed about what you care about, we’re all dorks here. Besides, in order to improve, peer review is very important, we need to break down these barriers quickly and build trust,” Miss Silver nodded firmly.

She had a point. Peridot wasn’t too stressed about the situation, she believed fiercely on the things on her list. Lapis, on the other hand, looked like she’d rather die. She looked at Peridot out of the corner of her eye like Peridot was holding a knife to her. The other girls had started to hesitantly switch papers, yet Lapis still hunched over hers like a crow.

Peridot sighed, “Trust me, I’ve seen a lot of stuff….like, a looooot.” As a form of good will, Peridot slid hers across first. Lapis pressed her lips together. Miss Silver was already starting to notice her hesitance. She had no choice, she relented. Peridot let Lapis read hers for a moment before looking:

Hurt/Comfort.

Angst.

Peridot tried not to think about Jasper.

Fantasy AU.

Septiplier.

Peridot read that last one twice. Was that an English word? She quirked an eyebrow and looked at Lapis in confusion. Lapis was staring down intently, with a severe blush forming.

Septiplier...what was tha-

Oh.

Oh.

Peridot bit down so hard on her lip to keep herself from laughing. She thought she would bleed. Unfortunately, a few unseemly snorts escaped.

Miss Silver frowned.

“I’m sorry,” Peridot apologized unconvincingly with a barking laugh, “It’s just....I didn’t expect her to be Youtuber shipping trash.”

“It’s not that weird!” Lapis refuted.

“And not only that, Markiplier and Jacksepticeye? Really? If you’re going to ship Youtubers you could at least pick ones that aren’t screaming manchildren,” Peridot went on, too amused to stop.

“Welcome to half of Youtube,” Lapis pouted, “So what? You’re some kind of internet elitist?”

“Absolutely,” Peridot chuckled. Lapis was staring her down, lip quivering. For a split second, Peridot feared she’d pushed her too far, then Lapis started laughing, too. It was light, like a bell ringing. Of course it was. She was something out of a sad Victorian poem. But now Peridot knew her secret, _SHE WAS GARBAGE_ _TOO._

Miss Silver tasked the class with writing a short passage, in between which, the two girls continued to chat.

“What’s Camp Pining Hearts anyway?” Lapis asked.

“Uh, only the greatest TV show on the planet?” Peridot retorted.

“Wait...isn’t it that one show on the CW?”

“Gross, no, it’s on Fox,” Peridot said, “I’ve got the first few seasons on DVD with me. I could show them to you,” she paused, “You know, if you want.”

Lapis hummed quietly in thought, “Maybe.”

Maybe she was already too deep under Jasper’s influence for Lapis to trust her. Lapis didn’t seem to regard her with disdain, but Peridot couldn’t guess what she was thinking.

“So, uh, why Septiplier of all things,” Peridot countered to keep the conversation going.

Lapis snorted, “I don’t even like video games all that much, it’s just...I don’t know, fun to watch them? It’s something to do while I draw or whatever. And I thought the idea of them together was cute.”

“You don’t think it’s weird to write about real life people?”

Lapis shrugged, “It’s more like I’m writing characters heavily based on them anyway. I can’t speak for everyone, but I know what I’m writing isn’t going to happen. It’s fiction.”

Peridot wasn’t sure she really understood, but shrugged, “Well, if we had wifi, I’d have to show you a higher caliber of Youtube gaming...or at least Game Grumps.”

An hour later the bells started ringing for lunch, almost like school. Peridot sighed, now realizing how hungry she really was.

“Alright, well, we’ll meet again on Wednesday to complete the introductory requirements but after that you’ll be able to earn the badge on your own!” Miss Silver announced as she opened to door for them. Once she took her first step out the door, Peridot looked back at Lapis and realized she’d be sitting alone at lunch again. It wasn’t like Peridot could ask Lapis to join them, not without risking Jasper tearing up the entire mess hall. Lapis noticed Peridot’s thoughtful expression as they walked down the path, the risk of them being seen together getting higher as more campers passed them.

“It’s fine,” Lapis sighed, “I understand, she’s more fun than me.”

Guilt twisted Peridot’s stomach, “That’s not true, I liked talking to you.”

A mirthless laugh left Lapis’ lips, “But sitting with me would just cause more trouble. I know that, you know that.”

Peridot bit her lip. Lapis...wasn’t wrong. While the situation was incredibly high school, it would do nobody any good to irritate Jasper. But that didn’t mean it was fair. She couldn’t in her conscience just let things stay as they were. Lapis and her were too much alike, and that meant something to someone like Peridot, who was prone to thinking so many people were clods. She refused to believe that getting closer to Jasper meant cutting off ties to Lapis, as feeble and new as they might be. So Peridot made a promise to herself. Somehow, someway, she was going to bridge the gap.

“Hey, Lapis,” Peridot started, “We should watch Camp Pining Hearts together, like, later in the week.”

Lapis gave her a weird look and smirked, “Alright, well, I guess I can count on that.”

 

* * *

 

 

“Psst!”

Peridot sleepily blinked her eyes open to see Jasper crouching on her chest.

She was too tired for this, “Are you trying to take a crap on me?” she whispered.

Jasper put a finger to her lips and jerked her head in the direction of the cabin door.

“Are you nuts?” Peridot swiftly looked over at Yellow Diamond’s cot, she had yet to notice Jasper’s movement apparently and was still fast asleep.

“Trust me,” Jasper had a glint in her eye, which told her she wasn’t going to leave Peridot alone.

Peridot sighed, “I’m blaming you if we get caught. Let me grab my hoodie.”

This clearly was not the first time that Jasper had snuck out. She expertly opened and shut the door at just the right speeds to avoid it from creaking. The sky was pitch black, midnight maybe? Peridot didn’t have a watch yet, she’d need to see if she could buy one from commissary. She wasn’t paying attention and nearly tripped down the steps with a soft clatter. Jasper quickly turned her head back to her. They held their breaths, but no one awoke.

“You have to be quiet, Per,” Jasper hissed.

“I can’t see a thing, I forgot to grab my glasses,” Peridot groaned, “Maybe I should go back and-”

“No, don’t worry about it.”

Peridot felt a warm, rough hand slip into her grip. It happened so quickly Peridot didn’t even have a chance to squeak.

“Just follow me,” Jasper whispered as she began to lead Peridot in the darkness.

Peridot didn’t expect Jasper’s hand to feel so nice. It had been a long time since Peridot had held hands with anyone. And it just...felt so natural. Peridot wished she could see, she wondered how they looked together. Together. That made it sound so much more intimate than she had intended. Jasper was just being practical. Yeah, practical, but that didn’t stop the warmth that spread through Peridot. She felt incredibly silly for getting caught up with all of this. She wasn’t a child!

When she started hearing frogs croaking and smelt wet grass, she realized where they were going.

“We’re not going for a late night swim are we?” Peridot asked.

“Nah, something much better though,” Jasper said, “Consider this a thank you for looking out for me the other day.”

In the distance, Peridot saw a small fire. There wasn’t a pit by the lake, though, so someone must have made it. As they got closer, Peridot made out the shapes of Amethyst, Ruby, Sapphire, and Greg, a boy from their cluster who looked like he belonged in an old 80s glamrock video.

“Hey, you both finally made it!” Amethyst waved them over. The group shifted to make room for the two of them.

“Who made the fire?” Peridot asked. It was decently well-made, even if it was small. Peridot wanted to make sure that it wasn’t Amethyst, otherwise they’d have to prevent a forest-killing blaze later on.

“That would be Ruby,” Amethyst flicked her thumb at Ruby who gave a proud smile.

“I got my fire-making badge last year, I’m kind of a pro,” Ruby made a “cool” pose. Sapphire giggled, which made Ruby grin wider.

“Here,” Amethyst handed Jasper and Peridot a pair of popped open coke bottles, which Peridot now noticed everyone else was sipping from, “I found them in a fridge when we were in the main office applying for a new badge.”

“Isn’t that an abuse of power?” Greg asked.

“If you tell you’re out of the group,” Amethyst mockingly threatened.

“What group, pray tell?” Peridot took a sip from her coke.

Jasper cleared her throat and proclaimed, “We original three of the Super Wicked Awesome Group, or SWAG-”

“Swag,” Peridot cringed.

“It was funnier last summer, and shut up it’s ironic now,” Jasper went on, “Have nominated you three pledges for membership. Thusly entailing that every week we sneak out and chill and be all elite and secret and shit.”

Peridot blinked. Jasper had chosen her. For something incredibly stupid of course. But she’d thought of her first. Peridot bit her lip, she felt embarrassed for feeling so good about that thought.

“Y’all cool with that?” Amethyst asked.

“Sure,” Greg shrugged.

“Ok,” Sapphire nodded.

“Eh, alright,” Peridot offered.

“Then it’s settled,” Jasper clapped her hands.

“I’m surprised you didn’t nominate someone from your own cabin Rubles,” Amethyst leaned back on her hands.

“Well, Sapphire’s wayyy cooler than anyone else from Pink Cabin,” Ruby winked at her pledge, “Besides, now we have people from every cabin.”

“Ooo, I didn’t even think about that,” Amethyst’s eyes widened, “Squad goals.”

“You’re an idiot,” Jasper cackled quietly. Then, she cleared her throat, “Now that that’s settled...Rose’s little ice breaker was...cute, but ‘round these parts we go hard. It’s time for Never Have I Ever. Last one standing wins.”

Peridot rolled her eyes, “Hard? That’s like, the second sleepover activity right behind braiding hair. We don’t even have alcohol.”

“You laugh now, Per, but this is of the utmost importance,” Jasper continued to act dramatics, “You all will leave here with a tight, eternal bond with your fellow Swaggers. Now, hands up!”

Everyone obliged. Peridot figured she was going to win this game, considering her current lifestyle and high school career thus far.

“I’ll start,” Jasper grinned, “Never have I ever smoked weed.”

“Oh fuck you,” Amethyst giggled as she put a finger down.

Sapphire meekly curled her index finger.

“For real?” Ruby asked with a smile.

“I tried it once with some friends,” Sapphire shrugged coyly, “It was ok.”

“Girl, say the word and I can. Hook. You. Up,” Amethyst added.

“Alright, Ruby, you’re the next senior member, so it’s your turn,” Jasper said.

“Hm,” Ruby thought for a moment, “Never have I ever...bought a porn subscription.”

Greg blushed and put a finger down, in contrast Jasper almost seemed proud doing the same.

“Oh my god, J,” Ruby laughed, “The bro I expected, but you?”

“Hey! I was peer pressured I swear!” Greg protested.

“Don’t be ashamed Greg,” Jasper grinned, “Porn is a glorious thing. And if it takes some cash to get some quality girl on girl pegging action, so be it.”

Sapphire grimaced. Peridot blinked. Was that serious? Was that what Jasper was into?

_Stop thinking about it!_ she chided herself, lest she blush in front of everyone.

“For your information it was anal...and not very good anal either.”

“Oh my god, gross gross, can we move on?”

Peridot looked down at her hands, ten for ten, she was in prime position to win against Ruby. Maybe she could lord that over Jasper later, but for now, it was Amethyst’s turn.

“Okay, well, bruja, you sniped me, now I’m gonna’ snipe you,” she grinned wickedly, “Never have I ever had sex.”

“Ha!” Jasper guffawed, keeping her nine fingers up, “Dumbass.”

“What?!” Amethyst leaned over, “I’m calling bullshit you can’t cheat!”

“I haven’t, honest to god. You want a virginity test like in the old days? Check my hymen?” Jasper stuck her tongue out.

“Wait, wait, wait,” Ruby interrupted, “Are you trying to pull a lesbian loophole? Like, you know that oral still counts.”

“And clam on clam,” Amethyst added.

Peridot found herself giggling at that comment.

Sapphire looked over at Peridot and softly gasped, “Peridot….”

Peridot had kind of been hoping that no one would have noticed she put her finger down, but now there was no avoiding it.

“Uh, Per, you know you only put your finger down if you’ve DONE the thing, right?” Jasper looked at her with wide eyes.

“Of course I know that,” Peridot snapped.

The group looked at each other.

Peridot felt herself sweating again, a pit in her stomach formed, “So what? I’ve done it! Big deal.”

“No need to be defensive,” Greg placed a hand on her shoulder, “Just...a little surprising I guess?”

“Yeah well...there you go,” Peridot mumbled.

“Oh my god!” Amethyst laughed in shock, “What was it like?”

“Has...no one else…really?” Peridot looked around the group for some savior, but she was the only one now with this particular sin on her hands, almost literally. “Um,” she swallowed, “It was...weird, and sweaty.”

It had been a long time since Peridot had even thought of it. She had no friends back home to talk with it about, and lord knows she wasn’t about to explain it to her parents. Besides, it wasn’t a pleasant memory, she had willfully let it slip back into her subconscious, eager to forget.

“Who was it?” Jasper asked.

This was bad, the whole group had gone quiet now. She wanted to hide, but also, weirdly, she wanted to talk. She’d never been able to put it into words before, never let it externalize. It could feel good, maybe. Then again, saying it out loud was almost like making it real again.

She took a deep breath, “Some guy, a senior.”

“Whoa, whoa,” Ruby pinched her eyes closed, “How old are you?”

“I just finished my freshman year,” Peridot rubbed her arm self-consciously.

“Fuck,” Ruby breathed, almost sounding mad, “Did he,” Ruby paused, “Did he like...force you?”

“No!” Peridot gasped, “No, it wasn’t anything like that. We were actually dating, sort of, I guess.” No one spoke up so she continued. “He thought I was funny, I guess. I was in one of the higher math classes with all the upperclassmen. It was really nerve wracking, you know? But he talked to me, it was nice. No one at my school talks to me. When he asked me out for homecoming I...there was no way I could’ve said no.”

Peridot gave an empty laugh, “I thought we were in love after a week. That’s what he’d told me at least, that he loved me. But he stopped saying it after a while so I, um, we did it and I thought that might help, but...I guess he got bored of me.”

She was stupid.

Saying it out loud just made her stupid decision sound all the more stupid.

She used to think of herself as a very smart person, but she didn’t know anything.

Then she heard Greg sniffling.

“A-...Are you crying?” Peridot asked.

Greg’s face was all red and he was biting his lip, but tears were unmistakably in his eyes, “Sorry! I just...it’s so sad! Your first time shouldn’t be like that!”

“You didn’t tell anyone,” Sapphire said, as if already knowing the answer.

Peridot blinked, the story was painful for her, but she had no idea that just hearing it would cause this much emotion in others. She swallowed, “Who would care?”

Jasper grunted and rested her face her hands. Had she hurt Jasper somehow? Perhaps Jasper had some painful memory, too.

“I didn’t mean to bring the mood down, sorry,” Peridot mumbled.

“Don’t sweat it, Dot,” Amethyst reached over Greg and laid a hand on Peridot’s, “Men are dicks...and crybabies apparently.”

“I’m just sensitive!” Greg spouted. The group giggled and it was like a weight had been lifted. Peridot felt surprisingly good. The bad feelings she felt about what had happened floated away like the smoke on their small campfire. There were people here who would hear her, listen to her, hell, even cry for her. She’d never felt anything like that before. It was cathartic. It was a warm glow in her stomach instead of a pit. It was friendship.

Peridot almost felt herself tear up when Amethyst took the reins again, “Alright, let’s let the kids take a swing at this. Your turn, Per.”

Peridot smiled at Amethyst and thought for a moment, “Never have I ever...posted on 4chan.”

“Does the Pokemon board count?”

“Yes.”

“Well, fuck.”

 

* * *

  


After an hour the group split up and walked back down the way towards the cabins. Peridot yawned, trailing beside Jasper in the dark. She would be exhausted tomorrow, but didn’t really care. Everyone else seemed tired, too, so there wasn’t much chatter until Jasper whispered to her, “I’m sorry that that...thing happened to you.”

Peridot had almost forgotten about that, she quirked an eyebrow, “That’s...fine, it’s not like it was your fault.”

“Still.”

Jasper didn’t go on. Now that the topic had been brought up, though, Peridot’s curiosity had been piqued. She asked quietly, “So you’ve never…?”

Jasper chuckled, “No. It’s hard enough finding a girl back home that isn’t into the schlong, let alone getting it on.”

Peridot decided to push the obvious question, hoping that she had garnered enough trust by this point, “Not even Lapis?”

Jasper paused, but answered, “No. Don’t get me wrong, we did...stuff. Like...with our hands...does that count?”

“I don’t know, I’ve never been with a girl. Maybe.”

Jasper grunted and shrugged.

That night, against her will, Peridot had trouble falling asleep due to thinking about how nice Jasper’s hands had been...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FOR THE RECORD I subscribe to Markiplier, Jacksepticeye, and the Game Grumps and have nothing but respect and admiration for them. Peridot is just a bit of an elitist haha. Good lord this chapter was sooooo self-indulgent, but I hope you all had some fun reading it! not sure when the update might be, but I don't think I can realistically uphold this chapter length, but we'll see :P

**Author's Note:**

> I just want to clarify that I've never actually gone to a sleep-away camp for longer than a weekend. I WAS a girl scout and know a thing or two about camping/outdoor activities, and a bunch of my friends did go to girl scout camp, but I'm sure there's a lot of holes in my knowledge. If anyone wants to give any feedback on how I'm portraying it, don't feel like you're being rude, I really don't mind. 
> 
> The first few chapters are probably going to stick with Peridot and have a strict chronological flow, but after that it'll be more open. So, if there's a pairing or character you wanna' see, leave a suggestion! Or don't, that's cool.
> 
> OH! I also want to give a shout out to JoyHeart's "Stories from Diamond Academy," it has such a good characterization and has been a real inspiration to me.


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